Lessons learned from Charlie

(This is an old post…I’m in Oregon now! Posts are going to come in bursts, when I can find enough internet connectivity to upload them as they come!)

I’m surprised by how Charlie has changed my life.

In many, many ways, he’s made it a lot harder. I knew that he would. We’ve had a puppy once before, and sadly, I couldn’t do it. I tried. But it was awful and I finally had to give him to some kids on a farm.

The puppy phase is just hard. If you’re not a dog person, it can be just awful.

(Trying to convince Charlie that he is, in fact, a water dog.)

Don’t get me wrong…Charlie is an all-star puppy. He was potty trained in a week. He is very obedient and incredibly smart. But he’s still a puppy. He has crazy bursts of energy and nipping and barking.

But as I have tried to learn everything I can about how to help and fulfill Charlie, I’ve found myself changing.

The biggest thing that Charlie has taught me is to start over. Dogs don’t dwell. They don’t rehash about the past, and they don’t worry about the future. Charlie doesn’t worry about yesterday. He lives right now.

Charlie is excited to wake up, every day. He doesn’t think about the mistakes he made yesterday. What’s more, he doesn’t think about the mistakes I made yesterday.